Anthony Weiner will not quit NYC mayoral race over new sex texts

New York
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At the press conference where he admitted his online sexual communications continued after he resigned from Congress, Anthony D. Weiner said on Tuesday he would continue his bid to become New York's next mayor.

With his wife, Huma Abedin, standing in the background, Weiner, 48, once again stood in front of a room of reporters admitting to sending explicit texts and photographs to another young woman, this time after his resignation from Congress and the birth of his son.

"I said that other texts and photos were likely to come out, and today they have," Weiner said Tuesday afternoon about the text published Monday on the gossip website TheDirty.com.

"While some things that have been posted today are true and some are not, there is no question that what I did was wrong," he added.

But he didn't clarify which of the crudely sexual texts were authentic.

According to "The Dirty," Weiner, used the "Carlos Danger" moniker to contact the 22-year-old woman in Indiana on Facebook and establish an online relationship with her. BuzzFeed reported early on Wednesday morning that the mystery women goes by the name Sydney Elaine Leathers.

It eventually evolved to the exchange of intimate photographs and XXX text, according to the gossip site.

The website said chats between the two began in July 2012 and allegedly extended into this year.

Give me a second chance

“As I have said in the past, these things that I did were wrong and hurtful to my wife and caused us to go through challenges in our marriage that extended past my resignation from Congress,” Weiner said in a campaign statement issued Tuesday before the conference.

He then introduced his wife to speak on his behalf.

"Anthony's made some horrible mistakes, both before he resigned from Congress and after. But I do very strongly believe that it is between us and our marriage," she said, at times appearing to force a smile. "I love him, I have forgiven him, I believe in him, and as he has said from the beginning, we are moving forward."

Weiner said he is no longer engaged in such behavior.

“I’m sure many of my opponents would like me to drop out of the race," Weiner said. "I want to bring my vision to the people of the city of New York.”

“I hope they are willing to still continue to give me a second chance," Weiner added.

After Weiner’s appearance, three of his rivals in the mayoral campaign — Bill de Blasio and Sal F. Albanese, both Democrats, and John A. Catsimatidis, a Republican — demanded that he drop out, The Times reported.

“Enough is enough,” de Blasio said at a news conference. “His presence in this race continues to diminish the debate, and it’s time for his presence in this race to end.”

Yesterday, the New York Times penned a scathing editorial saying Weiner needed to take himself out of the mayoral race.

Commenting on his statement that the public should have known more was coming about his sexual escapades, the Times said, “That’s ridiculous and speaks to a familiar but repellent pattern of misleading and evasion. It’s up to Mr. Weiner if he wants to keep running, to count on voters to forgive and forget and hand him the keys to City Hall.”

“But he has already disqualified himself,” the Times added.

New York's primary elections are on September 10 ahead of the mayoral election on November 5.